The "Facilitating Cross-Border Trade's Resilience through Maritime Trade Finance" parallel session of the 8^th Hongqiao International Economic Forum (HQF) was successfully held on the afternoon of November 6, 2025 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). The event was hosted by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China and organized by Bank of Communications (BOCOM). Vice Minister of Commerce Sheng Qiuping, Executive Vice Mayor of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government Wu Wei, and Chairman of BOCOM Ren Deqi attended the parallel session and delivered speeches.

In his address, Vice Minister Sheng Qiuping highlighted that the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee has charted a clear course for China's development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, emphasizing a commitment to advancing opening-up at a higher level and ushering in a new phase of mutually beneficial cooperation. The session outlined key directions, including strengthening the multilateral trading system, expanding international flows, fostering innovation-driven growth in trade, and accelerating the establishment of China as a leading trade power. Vice Minister Sheng further stressed that the Ministry of Commerce will continue to leverage Shanghai as a testing ground for pioneering opening-up measures, deepen collaboration with financial institutions such as Bank of Communications (BOCOM), and support efforts to drive high-quality development in trade.

REN Deqi, Chairman of BOCOM, stated that, as the only state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Shanghai, BOCOM steadfastly aligns with national strategies and fuels Shanghai’s ascent as a global hub for economy, finance, trade, shipping, and innovation. The bank will continue to be the forefront of real-economy financing, accelerate digital transformation, forge a more efficient, secure, and sustainable maritime-trade finance ecosystem, and unlock new drivers for cross-border trade.

The keynote session featured speeches from Algernon YAU, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the HKSAR Government; LI Wei, Executive Vice President of China COSCO SHIPPING Corporation Limited; Thomas J. Sargent, 2011 Nobel Laureate in Economics and Professor at New York University.

Algernon YAU said that by aligning maritime infrastructure, green ambitions and digital tradefinance platforms, Hong Kong will construct a resilient ecosystem capable of sustaining growth for the next generation of traders and shippers.

LI Wei observed that traditional cross-border trade models struggle with trust-building and data flow. He highlighted blockchain as a key solution to these challenges—one that can help create an ecosystem that is efficient, transparent, secure, intelligent, and environmentally sustainable, paving the way for high-quality growth in global trade.

Thomas Sargent highlighted the prevalence of disruptions and uncertainties in the contemporary global landscape. He concluded that it is of paramount importance for industry leaders to foster alignment among government bodies, the public, and all stakeholders. The goal is to develop a predictable and agreed-upon set of rules that facilitates both healthy competition and principled cooperation.

During the roundtable session, representatives from Worldwide Logistics Group, Suzano, Shanghai Commodity Warehouse Receipt Registration Co., Ltd., BOCOM, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (China) Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Data Group Co., Ltd. engaged in an in-depth discussion on “Maritime Trade Finance Innovation and Cross-Border Trade Facilitation: Practices and Prospects”.

At the parallel session, QIAN Bin, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer of BOCOM, unveiled the “BOCOM Trade Link” platform. The launch marks a solid step forward in the bank’s efforts to support China’s role as a leading trade power while promoting high-quality economic growth.